Fiscal disaster must be avoided

November 14, 2012

The election is over. Congress, however, will have less than two months to get its act together.

The White House and Congress simply must take decisive action to stop the $16 trillion national debt from growing. The last time the debt matched the U.S. gross domestic product was right after World War II. Then, the nation was trying to survive. This time it's self-inflicted

A bipartisan consensus to curb deficit spending is vital to America's future.

Of more immediate concern, however, are a massive tax increase and automatic government spending cuts that will kick in if Congress does not stop them before Jan. 1. Still struggling to cope with the recession, tens of millions of families - and the economy as a whole - cannot cope with higher taxes. Moreover, the automatic spending cuts could cripple national security.

President Barack Obama and the existing members of Congress must find a way to avoid the fiscal disaster that could arrive with the dawning of a new year.